THE SIEGE OF VICKSBURG 33 The Confederate Defense Line 33 The Assault of May 19 34 The Assault of May 22 35 Union Siege Operations 40 Confederate Trench Life 41 Civilian Life in Vicksburg During the Siege 45 Fraternization 45 Johnston’s Dilemma 47 The Surrender of Vicksburg 49 The Significance of the Fall of Vicksburg 52 GUIDE TO THE AREA 54 THE PARK 60 HOW TO REACH THE PARK 60 ADMINISTRATION 60 RELATED AREAS 60 VISITOR FACILITIES 60 [Illustration: _Merchant steamers unloading supplies at Vicksburg after the surrender._ Courtesy Library of Congress.] [Illustration: Cannon overlooking the river.] _Across the imperishable canvas of the American Civil War are vividly recorded feats of arms and armies, and acts of courage and steadfast devotion which have since become a treasured heritage for all Americans. Among the military campaigns, few, if any, present action over so vast an area, of such singular diversity, and so consequential to the outcome of the war, as the great struggle for control of the Mississippi River. Seagoing men-of-war and ironclad gunboats engaged shore defenses and escorted troops along river and bayou; cavalry raids struck far behind enemy lines as the armies of the West marched and countermarched in a gigantic operation which culminated in the campaign and siege of Vicksburg. Protected by heavy artillery batteries on the riverfront and with land approaches to the north and south guarded by densely wooded swamplands, Vicksburg defied large-scale land and river expeditions for over a year. Finally the tenacious Grant, in a campaign since accepted as a model of bold strategy and skillful execution, forced the surrender of Vicksburg on July 4, 1863, splitting the Confederacy in two and securing for the North its great objective in the Western Theater._ VICKSBURG AND THE MISSISSIPPI.